


There was a dream

by Doug48



Series: Dreams [1]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Drama & Romance, F/M, Family Drama, Police
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-27 00:47:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13869507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doug48/pseuds/Doug48
Summary: I wrote this primarily for myself, after reading another fan-fiction story that focused way too much [in my opinion] on the darker, con-mammal aspect of Nick Wilde. It's a good story, and mostly well written, but it bothered me, so I wrote this. I have corresponded with that author and received permission to post this [or something like it], but I’m not sure if I should mention the author’s name and the story title because I have the impression that the author is tired of hearing from people that hated the story. That being said, I’ll tell you if you ask, but please don't be too harsh if you do choose to comment.





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you sow, you shall also reap

“OFFICER HOPPS. OFFICER WILDE! MY OFFICE NOW.” Chief Bogo shouted from just outside his office on the third floor. There was a definite pause between the two names and a change of inflection. It wasn’t hard to tell, because everyone in the police station had heard plenty of shouts from the chief for comparison. Many of these were related to something the fox may, or, in most cases may not, have done.

Wilde and Hopps entered the chief’s office and then Wilde shut the door. As usual, the office was arranged for larger mammals like the chief, and there were few amenities for smaller mammals like rabbits and foxes. It's possible that the chief does this on purpose because he has so few smaller mammals working for him now, and it's also possible that he expects to have less shortly. 

“Chairs,” the big buffalo said. He looked angry, but then, he always looked angry, so this might or might not be a bad sign. 

They climbed up in the seats in the usual, awkward fashion, but did not sit. Instead, they stood facing the cape buffalo who sat across from them behind his desk. Wilde's shoulders were slumped, and he looked annoyed; Hopps ears were down and she looked ashamed. Both refused to meet their boss’ eyes. 

'I had such high hopes for that partnership,' Bogo thought. 

“So. I have your written reports. Anything you’d like to add?” Wilde and Hopps shook their heads. Wilde had looked at Hopps first, and now Hopps was looking uncertain, Bogo noted. “OK. I have some questions for the two of you and then I’ll talk to you each individually.”

“Are we in trouble? Do I need my police mammal’s rep?” Wilde asked. To the chief, the voice sounded like a whine. 

‘Yes’, Bogo thought, but didn’t say it or let any sort of sign show on his face. “This is just an informal discussion. A couple of my officers had some trouble while on vacation in another jurisdiction, and now I have a report from the sheriff over there. Certain details came to his attention as a result of questioning one Rocco Lars, and now I’d like your thoughts regarding those details.” 

Wilde looked briefly alarmed when he heard this, and Chief Bogo continued. “Let’s start with you, Wilde, when did you know about Rocco’s plan, what did you do, and who did you tell? Your report isn’t very clear on these points.” The chief leaned forward slightly. These were the details on which he most wanted clarity. 

“I found out the first time I talked to him. He told me he was planning to steal the golden carrot in broad daylight and I didn’t believe him. After I talked to him again, I got more information, but it still seemed ridiculous. The last day, I caught him actually stealing the carrot and I arrested him. It’s all in the report.”

“Why didn’t you inform anyone, including your partner, about your suspicions?” The chief asked. Wilde had not said what day or time was the ‘first time I talked to him,’ the chief noticed. 

“Judy and I had had a fight, so I didn’t tell her. I didn’t tell anyone else because I didn’t think they’d believe me. In any case, if they did believe me and confronted Rocco, he’d just lie and say he never said any such thing.”

“OK,” Bogo paused and made a note. “Hopps, did Wilde tell you anything about Rocco’s plan?”

“No sir. We had had a fight, like he said, because I called Rocco names on the first day we saw him and then Nick defended him. I was angry and avoided him most of the rest of that day and for some time after. Also, I wasn’t feeling well and I think he wanted to give me some space.” Bogo noticed that Hopps was trying to defend her partner. 

“Did you talk to him between that first day and the next?”

“Yes sir. “

“Did he mention the planned robbery?” The buffalo asked this almost kindly. He knew what her answer would be based on the way the reports had been written. As chief, he had read many reports and he knew perfectly well when an officer, or officers, in this case, were trying to hide something because they had screwed up. 

“….”

“Please answer the question.”

She looked at Wilde, who looked away, and then she said “No sir. But we didn’t really talk all that much anyway and I’m sure-“

“That’s enough. Officer Hopps, please wait outside while Officer Wilde and I have a chat.”

Judy put her hand on Nick’s shoulder, briefly, got off the chair, and then left the room. Nick didn’t react to her touch and kept his head and ears down. Judy carefully pushed the door closed. 

The buffalo looked at the fox. “So. Let me tell you what I think happened. You were feeling sorry for yourself, like usual, but this time you were also mad at Judy, so you helped a criminal plan a robbery. You didn’t tell anyone because you hadn’t decided if you wanted to go through with it and fully participate in the crime, or not. Then at the last minute, you got cold feet and tried to arrest Rocco to cover up your earlier indecisiveness. That about right?”

Now, the fox reacted. “NO, THAT IS NOT WHAT HAPPENED!” Wilde shouted. 

Bogo just stared at him and then spoke calmly. “Wilde, this is my office and I’m the only one who gets to yell in here. The Bunnyborrow sheriff is a friend of mine and he knows Rocco fairly well. Rocco told him that you, Wilde, were going to get a 10% split of the profits for your part in the operation, which was going to be to store the golden carrot until it was safe to fence. You confronted Rocco during the robbery on the last day and attempted to arrest him, he resisted and tried to escape. You caught him and then actually did arrest him. Rocco thinks you interfered in order to get a larger share of the take, but I think you just simply changed your mind at the last minute. Neither of those reasons are acceptable for a police mammal in my precinct. Especially one with your recent, very unimpressive, work history. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” Wilde said, looking less angry now. 

“A formal inquiry will soon be held regarding your most recent actions, and I’ll be making several recommendations. You are hereby placed on administrative leave until the board reaches a verdict. At a minimum, you will no longer be partners with Officer Hopps because you refused to tell her what you knew about a crime in progress.” 

“You can't do that!“ Wilde said, angry again.

“Do not tell me what I can and can not do, fox,” the chief replied. "I will not continue to let her cover for you on the job."

“I-,” Officer Wilde said.

The buffalo just looked at him a long time waiting for him to continue. When the fox didn't, the buffalo said, “We can choose the paths we take and the choices we make. Good or bad. You chose poorly. Now, get out of my office.” He said this calmly, not because he was too angry to shout, but because he found himself too tired. 

Nick Wilde went out and then Officer Hopps came in, but didn't close the heavy door all the way. 

“Sir, Nick is just upset right now and didn’t mean….” Judy began and then trailed off. She had obviously heard all or most of the conversation.

The buffalo looked at the door and noticed the edge of a red tail as the fox listened outside. "He's holding you back," the chief said to Judy.

"I know, but I don't know what else to do with him. There aren't very many career options available for Nick. He just... I guess he just isn't very good at working a steady job."

"He could be if he would try," the buffalo replied. The red tail moved and the buffalo knew the message had been delivered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be explaining all of this in later chapters. If you'd like to know which story it's based on, see the comments or send me a comment and ask. If you don't like part of it, let me know, and I may fix it. As of April 2018, I'm working on a second version.


	2. Talking to Judy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Like any dream, there is a point where you wake up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has the part that I'm not sure about. "It's not even a joke...", and I might have gone a little too far. As some have pointed out, it's my story so I write it the way I write it, but some of you are authors as well. The intent is to illustrate, or further illustrate, that this was a nightmare for Nick, and he's trying to communicate that to Judy.

I woke up terrified, and looked around. It's Thursday night and I am at my place and in my bed. Judy and I are going to leave for Bunnyborrow tomorrow morning, and I am supposed to meet her at the train station in a few hours. 

'My god,' I thought, 'it was so real.' I got up, grabbed my phone, and dialed as I paced.

The phone rang a few times and then it went to voicemail. I wanted to talk to HER not her machine! It was… oh god, 2:17 AM. 

“This is Judy Hopps. Please leave a message after the beep.”

“… Judy, Carrots, I ah… I had a nightmare and I have to talk to you. I’m sorry it’s late. I’m exhausted and I don’t really want to go to Bunnyburrow with you, but I definitely don’t want you to go until we talk. I’m… falling for you, Carrots. I don’t think you know. That’s what the dream was mostly about. We went to Bunnyburrow, I had a fight with your mother, you set me up on a date with Gideon’s sister, I saw some 'rabbits only' signs in the town, so we had a fight, and then there was a robbery that I didn’t tell anyone about, so I think I lost my job when Bogo found out. Anyway… So, call me back when you get this?” And I hung up. 

Then I sat down on the couch by the phone, thought about what I was going to say to Judy, and waited. And waited. And waited. 

I woke up, still on the couch, to a knock at my door. My apartment isn’t as small as Judy’s, but I had fallen asleep in the main room waiting for the phone to ring, so I wasn't very far from the door. I rushed over and opened the door, not even looking to see who it might be. It was Judy with a backpack and two cups of coffee in a paper cup holder, and she was looking at me oddly. I looked down and realized that the first thing she must have seen was my boxer shorts. 

“Good morning, Nick. Ummm. Looks like you’re not ready to go yet?” She said, and handed me one of the coffees while trying not to look at me. 

“You didn’t get my message?” I asked and took the coffee. "Come in." 

She turned back toward me and looked up. “Message? Oh, that… well I slept through your call and then got up early and realized you might need some help getting a move on like usual. I’m having some trouble with my phone so I didn’t listen to my messages and anyway, I figured I’d be seeing you about now so you can just tell me whatever it is. Does the message have something to do with why you’ve in your boxer shorts and you look like you only just woke up two minutes ago? We need to catch the train….” She trailed off as she realized that the look on my face might mean we’re not going to Bunnyburrow. 

She closed the door and put her coffee on a table and the backpack on the floor. “Oh, I’ll just.. you know, listen to the message-“ Judy said, turning away from me again. 

“No, no. I’ll just say it. I had a nightmare about visiting Bunnyburrow. Also, I think I’m falling in love with you,” I confessed, and now I was the one afraid to look. 

There was a pause and a clunk as she dropped the phone, so I looked. Her ears had dropped behind her head and she was not looking at me. “Ah, Nick, umm. We’re friends, but I don’t love you, you know? In fact, I was going to see if I might set you up with a vixen in Bunnyburrow.” She turned around and looked at me, and then picked up her phone. 

I started giggling and then laughing. I couldn’t help it. I just fell over on the couch and laughed until I cried. Judy came and sat by me and put her arm around me.

“You really are exhausted, you dumb fox. What was so funny?” 

“That was in my nightmare, too. Hey, listen to the message. I think it’ll get us both on the same page. I’m even more exhausted now than I was when I called and I’m still not ready because I stayed up waiting for you to call me back. I’ll put some clothes on,” I said, got up, and headed for my bedroom. I didn’t hear her play the message, but she probably has the volume dialed down so it’s not too loud for a bunny’s sensitive ears. I was careful to make sure I had my badge just in case the dream was really just a premonition or something. I thought about arresting Rocco the first time I saw him, or maybe just decking him? Throw a lit cigarette in my face, will you?

I came back into the room to see Judy still on the couch. She had apparently listened to the message, and was just sort of staring at me. “Wow,” was all she said. 

“I can still go to Bunnyburrow with you. I packed last night. I’ll just, you know, need to take several naps and then crash tonight in John’s room.” 

“I don’t know. I really don’t,” Carrots said, looking very uncertain. 

“Carrots, I’m sorry I dropped that on you like this. I wanted you to know because, in the dream, everything in my life just unraveled when you… ah…. Yeah. Introduced me to that vixen. I thought you were rejecting me even though you didn’t know how I felt. I, ummm, didn’t want to be a cop anymore because it's something we do together, so I aided and abetted a criminal in a felony. Bogo found out, confronted the two of us, and said some unpleasant things. I don't think I was even ME; I became that con-mammal you saw when you called me a liar that day we first met. Just before I woke up, I remember I wanted to find a fast train with my name on it and step in front.”

“Don’t even joke about that!”

“Not even a joke, Judy. Not even. It was truly horrible. Imagine if you…. I don’t know, tried to strangle Mr. Big instead of kissing his cheeks after he didn’t ice us. Doing that speech, but being proud of what you said about predators like me instead of ashamed. You wouldn’t be this you; in the dream, I wasn’t me." I used my paws to gesture as I spoke and continued. "I was sleep deprived and mad at you, but those are really just excuses.”

I sat down on the couch next to her. Then she said "I’ll call my parents and cancel. They’ll be upset, but they’ll understand.”

“No.”

“No? You’re in no shape for this. My family has all this drama that they’ll drag you into. It could be exhausting, and you’re already exhausted. You look kind of washed out, Nick.”

“Yeah, that’s part of what got me in trouble in the dream. I was so tired that I started being really stupid. And you were… Ummm. Probably shouldn’t go into that.”

“I was what?”

“Well, you went into heat.”

“Huh? That makes no sense.”

“Like I said, it was a dream and it was… wrong. You’re not having headaches, are you?”

“Yeah?” She asked. Her ears were slanted oddly, and I had seen her do this before when she thought I was pointing out something obvious, but irrelevant. 

“Argh. The ‘heat’ started with headaches and then you sort of… had a VERY exciting dream about me if you know what I mean. I was on a date with the vixen at the time, but it’s my dream so I know.”

“You dreamed about me dreaming about you…. ”

“Yeah, this and more. Like I said, there was something wrong with me, but it seemed so real. We met Rocco Lars and you called him names, and then I defended him because I thought some of the town bunnies were bigots, and you got mad, and I called you a bigot, and I ended up dating that vixen you introduced me to. Then I broke up with her the next day," I said. 

"You really DO NOT like Rocco, do you? Oh, and Rocco proposed to one of your sisters before we got there. Your mom flipped out and I caught the brunt of it the first time. The first time I meet your parents, later today. I'll get mad and totally misunderstand what her concerns are… It'll be truly horrible,” I concluded, remembering.

“Did you sleep with the vixen?” Judy asked.

“No, and I didn’t even want to. I wanted to help her set up a bakery shop by sharing my felony money with her. I may have been trying to get back at you by ruining my own life...” I wonder if that's what it was?

“Wow. Wait… my sister was dating a raccoon? Rocco Lars? THAT raccoon?”

“Yeah, Jenny is dating Rocco Lars. Try to keep up, right?" I said, attempting to be funny, but she just glared at me. "Anyway, I found out later, from the raccoon, that he was just using her to get in good with the other Hopps. Bunnyburrow is a mostly Hopps town, so Rocco thought a relationship with one of you would be good public relations until he grabbed the carrot and disappeared on the last day of the festival.” Now Judy was looking thoroughly confused. 

“Jenny never mentioned a raccoon, but she has been known to make the odd comment about how much she likes the predators. There was this wolf when we were younger that I wondered about," she said. "My parents will have a huge golden carrot on display at the festival. How do you know about the carrot?”

“I don’t know. You must have mentioned this stuff to me and it just sort of stuck in my subconscious or whatever. You know, I think I’d like to go to Bunnyborrow just to see what sort of differences there are. Also, now I’ll be ready for whatever happens. Like the tiny bed… Hmm. Have to bring some sort of bed roll if I’m going to get any sleep.” Now I had a plan and I felt energized. 

“So… you want to go?”

“Well, obviously, I’ll need to get some sleep at some point, very soon. Probably a good long nap this afternoon after we get to your parents’ place. You were planning to get a ride with Jenny?”

“Yeah…. Again, how do you know… Never mind.”

So we took the train to Bunnyborrow, and got there early, just like in my dream. Unlike my dream, Judy let me sleep on the train and I think she stayed awake. Also unlike my dream, I didn't feel like I was hearing a story about myself.


	3. First Day in Bunnyborrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick begins to "live the dream"

“Nick, wake up. We’re here.” She grabbed one of our bags, I grabbed another, and my bedroll, and then I more or less stumbled out of the train car behind her and onto the platform. Jenny was not there to give us a ride to the Hopps' residence. 

“Just like the dream,” I mumbled. Judy heard me, but did not comment. “We can just walk to one of the stands and then help out until we can get a ride to the homestead.”

“Not sure you’re in any condition to help out…. Maybe you can crash in the truck?” Judy had the face she gets when she’s making plans and I reminded myself that I had already told her I loved her. And that she didn’t feel the same way. 

“Yeah. Tell them I had a REALLY late night chasing somebody or other. And please don’t mention me being lazy to your mother.” 

“OK,” Judy said, clearly being willing to agree to nearly anything at this point. 

We walked until Judy saw a familiar stand and a crowd of customers. “That’s probably Jenny.”

“Ask her about me sleeping in the truck. And about bunny butt cakes,” I said, giggling. For some reason, I found the idea hilarious. 

“Nick, just… go to the truck. I’ll talk to Jenny.”

I went to the truck, opened the door, rolled down the window, climbed inside, and then rolled down the window on the other side of the cab. It was hot, but not as bad as it would have been in back in the sun. There was some breeze coming through the windows. I used my bedroll for a pillow, shut the door, and slept until Judy woke me around 3 PM.

“Rise and shine. Jenny wants to meet you,” Judy greeted me. I could see her sister standing a ways back. 

“Oh, hi Jenny,” 

“So, this is the illustrious Mr. Wilde. I’d heard that foxes preferred to rest during the day, but you really take the cake! Wow.”

“Yeah, I got to get my beauty sleep, but I never seem to get quite enough.” Jenny laughed, so I jumped out of the cab, looked at Judy, and said “Speaking of cake. Did you ask her about the bunny butts?” 

Jenny laughed again and Judy punched me. Jenny said, “they’re a great seller.”

I said “Yeah, she has a great… uh….” And didn’t know how to continue. 

Jenny laughed some more and Judy face palmed. 

“OK. Not enough sleep yet, but you’re looking better and the crowd has thinned out, so I’m taking you to the house,” Judy said. Judy and I got back in the truck and off we went.

On the way, I asked Judy about the butt cakes again to give her a chance to vent. She looked annoyed and told me they should have asked her first, and then filled me in on whose idea it was. She didn’t waste any time asking me how I knew. By this time, she probably had decided to think of me as psychic or something. I was beginning to wonder if I was actually dreaming again. Am I asleep in the truck or asleep on the train or still back at my apartment waiting for Judy to call me back?

We arrived at the house, and it went just like the dream. The kids mobbed me and then pop-pop interrogated me. I told him I was a red for camouflage and he liked that. And the idea that I had been in the same war he remembered. Judy pulled me away before him and me could talk more about marriage with Judy. 

We went in and Judy showered while I napped again. She woke me up and I showered, but didn’t bother to joke with her about sharing this time. Then I wondered if that joke was during a different shower? I knew when her parents were going to arrive and that Bonnie would be angry. I wanted to sleep some more, but I went along with Judy outside anyway to find Pop pop asleep again. Lucky buck. 

As expected, the truck with her parents and her sister pulled up and everyone got out. Bonnie and Stu looked upset and stayed near the truck, and Judy asked me if I knew what it was about. Had she had forgotten that I actually DID know what it was about? 

“Your mother is not happy about your sister’s dating choices,” I said. “I know you don’t like Rocco either, and I don’t disagree, but your sister thinks of him the way you think of me. Maybe there’s some good in him, you know? But there isn’t.”

“You’re just going to assume the dream was really some sort of premonition?” Judy asked, sounding very skeptical now.

I thought about reassuring her by telling her that, yes, it’s all been true so far, but then I wondered how she would take that bit of news? She might think I was nuts or delusional or something. 

Best to down play it. “I might as well, right? Can’t hurt. Just remember, Carrots,” I added, and winked at her like I was up to something crazy. “Anything I say from here on out is almost certainly going to be the gods’ own truth, so you might keep that in mind if you disagree with me!” I laughed, and batted one of her ears. 

She looked at me oddly, and swatted my hand away. Judy and I walked toward the truck to greet her parents and she hugged them both as I hung back. Jenny was angry and went into the house without talking to me. I kept my mouth shut. 

Judy asked her parents, “What’s wrong?”

“Ask your father,” Bonnie replied. I decided to stick with the script, or some of it, anyway, because I couldn’t remember everything and what if I said something to make things worse or didn’t say something and that made things worse? Judy and Stu talked about Rocco and then Bonnie joined in. At some point they realized I was there and that there were some younger rabbits hiding behind my legs as well. 

“I’m Nick Wilde, your daughter’s police partner,” I said, putting out a paw. Judy’s parents shook it and Bonnie said she had heard a great deal about me. I again had the feeling that I was being measured, but it wasn’t as hostile this time. Or that’s not how it seemed this time, anyway.

We went inside and sat around a table while Bonnie left to prepare drinks for us. I had a good conversation with Stu, but Bonnie was a problem when she returned. She gave Stu some trouble first and I waited for my turn. I remembered not to mention my conversation with Pop Pop or mention the Hopps mine because both had been trouble areas. 

She asked me my age, and then my occupations, both past and present, and scoffed when I said I planned to be a cop for a “good long while.” Judy had told Bonnie about my previous jobs and the various lies associated with them, so, like the gambler I was, I played the cards I was dealt. Yes, I sold some ice cream that I didn’t pay for, but I had licenses for that. Yes, I sold a skunk butt rug to a mob boss, but he forgave me. Yes, yes…. My past was biting me again, but not as bad this time because I remembered to give fuller explanations. 

In the dream, I had felt her hostility just under the surface and wondered why Judy didn’t see it that way. Judy heard every word, but she’s so nice and positive that she didn’t understand why there could be a problem. Also, this is her mother, so there’s that. Now I was ready and it didn’t seem to be as bad. It was just… a mother protecting her children. Jenny was having trouble and Judy might be as well, so Bonnie responded by attacking me to see if she could get me to leave Judy alone. Good maternal instincts, really, but she should be attacking Rocco, and not me. 

The pizza arrived and we ate. We went to bed soon after that and I got a good night’s sleep on my bedroll on the floor of John's room. Not a great night’s sleep, but pretty good. If I dreamed this time, I don’t remember it.


	4. Second Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick talks to the other foxes and Judy's mother at the faire, and then he goes to a tavern.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote Nick like he's not as rattled as he was, but he is worried about screwing up and not getting a second chance. And so he's kind of rambly.

Judy woke me up at 9 AM the next morning, and things continued to go the way I remembered. I talked to Jen while Judy was elsewhere and Jen suggested I talk to the Hopps' business partner Gideon to see how he got in good with Bonnie. Judy returned and I thought I saw an opening after she waited until we were in the truck to talk about it. 

“You two were chummy.” Judy commented, clearly wanting to talk to me about her problem with her sister, Jenny. 

This time I was better rested and not missing my coffee so much, so I said “Yeah. She wanted to apologize to me for the way her mother acted. Jenny thinks it’s her fault and it’s not a great first impression for a guest like me to get, you know?”

“Apologize? Well that makes sense. She is the one dating Rocco Lars. He’s got to be one of the worst mammals I’ve ever met.”

I remembered that as well, but she said those things later. She’s obviously been thinking about them awhile. “Carrots, he’s… well, your sister likes him. She thinks he’s a diamond the rough and sees him like you saw me.”

“You said that before, but he's not you. The situation is totally different,” she shot back, looking and sounding annoyed. Her ears were forward and her arms were crossed on her chest. 

“Carrots. I know you don’t like Lars because he’s bad news. You’ve met him and I haven’t. You seem to really hate him, so I’m thinking he needs a good kick in the face.” 

“At least,” Judy muttered, but she calmed down a bit. 

I continued as if she hadn’t commented, but she knew I heard her. “You’ve always been a good judge of character before, so I’m sure you know what you’re talking about. Look at me after all.” I grinned at her. “Just, you know, please don’t over react. For example, kicking him in the face would be over reacting.” 

That seemed to help, and Judy thought for awhile before saying anything else. “Nick, that dream you had…. You helped Rocco steal the carrot?”

“That’s right. In the dream, I meet him… tomorrow. He’ll be selling his wares downtown.” I decided not to mention any other stuff because she seemed to have a hard time processing what I did know. I was busy trying to concentrate on being the best friend I could so the dream result wouldn’t happen. 

“Why did you help him?” Judy asked. 

“Well, it’s simple really. I was a selfish prick who didn’t care about anyone’s feelings but my own,” I said, trying to sound disinterested, as if I was talking about someone else. “Remember the thing about deserving a kick in the face? That wouldn’t just be Rocco.” 

“But you’re not that kind of person,” she insisted. 

“But I was, apparently. So maybe I can be if I… I don’t know… make the wrong choices? So I’m being more careful," I said. Then I grinned again and added "And I’m trying to make sure I get more sleep.”

“That’s ridiculous. That you would do such evil things just because you were tired. Evil people do evil things. Maybe when you get tired or drunk or whatever, the ‘real’ you come closer to the surface, but you’re still fundamentally decent.”

I didn’t truly believe her because she didn’t have a dream about making the kind of choices that wreck your life, so I just shrugged and she let the subject drop. 

Judy and I went to the faire. I saw the golden carrot, but didn’t try to touch it this time. I thought about Rocco stealing it and looked around. "He’ll park his truck right over there in a couple of days," I said to myself. If Judy heard me, she made no comment. 

I helped Judy assemble equipment until lunch time and then I went off to meet the Grays as Jenny had suggested this morning. I had to make sure Gideon's sister Jeanette doesn’t get the wrong impression this time. 

I talked to Gideon awhile and waited for him to mention my pheromones so I could make some comment about NOT chasing his sister. He didn't; probably because I had showered this time and smelled different. 

Gideon seemed to be appreciating my candor and honesty during our talk this morning, so I came right out and said what I was thinking. “Oh, and I’m not chasing your sister because I’ve got my eye on someone else. She and I talked about it, and the answer was not yes. It’s foolish, but I’m hoping she’ll change her mind. Or maybe I’ll forget about her about the same time hell freezes over. Please don’t tell anyone that isn’t a fox.” I took careful note of the look on Gideon’s face, his scent, and his body language. As a former con mammal, I had always tried to get the level of empathy I now had with Gideon. At which point, I’d ask them for money or try to sell them a skunk butt rug. Gods, I was a major jerk and there is very little that I miss about that life. Come to think of it, I'm not sure what I do miss about it?

I’m pretty sure Gideon knew who I was talking about. “Good luck,” was all he said when I left. 

I waved and then went to beard the lioness like I had in the dream so I could stay on script and because she does help me later when Stu gets mad about the damage from the truck rampage that shouldn't happen this time. I saw her preparing for the pie eating contest that Judy would win, and Jeanette was helping out. 

“To put it bluntly, I sense we have a problem and I’d like to mend whatever bridge I broke,” I said after the initial verbal sparring.

Now, I realized she didn’t think I was serious about being a cop. THAT was her concern… Can people change? She didn’t think so. I told her about my past career, but this time I didn’t think about telling her Judy was what made me become a cop. This time, I realized it was my desire for respect. For my place. To be a better mammal. Corny, I know, but that’s what it was. 

I literally ran into Jeanette again on the way out. She had been eavesdropping, and so I got the blueberry stains again. Forgot about THAT! I visited the port-a-potty and, again, it didn’t help much. Hmmm. I don’t want Jeanette thinking I’m flirting with her, I thought as we walked back to the pie tent. Last time, I had asked her to call me Nick, so this time I didn’t; and I had touched her snout last time, so this time I didn’t. I had showered more recently, so this time I didn’t smell like I was in love, or not as much, anyway. 

Just to drive the point home, and because I didn’t want anything like the screw up that happened just before Rocco stole the carrot, I said something slightly different before leaving. “Speaking of Judy, I’m well past the reasonable time I said I’d take for lunch and I really, really, don’t want to disappoint her. She’s my best friend, you know?” I thought about saying more, but wasn’t sure what because I wasn’t actually dating Judy. Jeanette nodded, and we parted ways. 

I went back to Judy and we finished up work before returning to her home. In the dream, I had spent the next six hours or so agonizing about telling Judy how I felt, and then I got crushed when she set me up with the vixen. I took a shower again to maintain continuity, but I didn’t joke about saving water. I waited for her to criticize me about my choice of tie, but this time she didn’t. Oh, of course. That time was probably because she wanted me to look my best when we met the other town foxes. She still finished early, so I decided to use the time to talk about something useful.

“Carrots. Have you thought about what I told you the morning we left?” I was being careful to stand back from her to give her all the figurative room she needed. 

She was silent awhile. Then she said, “Yes, I’ve thought about it. I still don’t know what to say.”

“OK,” I said. “I just wanted to check. I was talking to someone today, and it occurred to me that I was willing to wait for your answer for a good long while.” 

“Who were you talking to about it?” 

“Gideon. Remember how I told you that in the dream you set me up with his sister? I wanted to make sure Jeanette didn’t get the wrong idea so I told her brother I had a crush on someone. I didn’t tell Jeanette anything, of course, because I have no idea how I might do that.” 

“Yeah, there is no real good way to tell a girl that you’re not interested in her when you don’t actually know if she’s interested in YOU.”

“Yeah, let’s go to the tavern.”

On the way, I brought out the subject of Rocco because I wanted to make sure she knew I was on her side, whatever I might say later. I had an idea and wanted to see what she thought of it.

“…scumbag,” Judy concluded her list a few minutes later. 

“Hmm. I think you already used that one.” I had asked her what she thought of Rocco and I got a list of insults. They weren’t actually alphabetical as expected, but they were thorough and seemed to cover all aspects of his life. 

“Carrots, I was thinking. He's going to ask me to help him with that felony I mentioned. For that to work, we have to meet him somehow and then I have to get him alone, and that means you have to leave. Maybe you can get a phone call or we can have a pretend fight? Then I’ll probably suggest to him that you’re a hard ass and I don’t like you very much so I can get him talking.”

“And record what he says?”

“I don’t know… It could backfire. I really should have noticed the recorder when you used it on me, and of course Rocco is not me. I could keep it in my pocket and hope it picks up something, I suppose. Really, I don’t need him to confess anything. I just need to know what his plans are. Then I can tell you and we can tell the sheriff, so he can be there when Rocco shows up to steal the golden carrot.” I was rather proud of this plan. 

“Yeah… What do you mean, a pretend fight?” 

“Well, maybe not a fight. Just some sort of pretext for me talking to him without you there as if Rocco and I both don’t like you. A fight would give me leverage by having something in common with my “mark." Or you get a phone call and I tell you to “go away and take care of whatever is so important” or whatever. Just, you know, please don’t take it wrong when I act like you’re stupid in front of him. Then, I’ll find out what Rocco is doing and tell you. What do you say?”

“I don’t know… Sounds unnecessarily complicated.”

“OK. We’ll talk about it some more later,” I said. 

We reached the tavern, and went inside. The rest went pretty much the way I expected. Stu told us the story of the golden carrot and the word "noots." Judy and Jeanette didn’t talk about Jeanette getting a date with me. Judy, her mom, and Jenny still had their fight, however. I didn’t get my heart broken because I didn't run into Judy outside the restrooms because she wasn’t looking for me to ask me about a date with Jeanette. This time, Jeanette came over to us to talk to her brother and not to ask me for a date tomorrow. 

Now I had changed the narrative, and I wasn’t sure what would happen next. 

The night wore down and we all went home. Judy and I went to our separate rooms and I got some sleep on my bedroll on the floor.


	5. Third Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick's plans to catch Rocco move forward, but not without a minor setback.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rather like this one. It was originally much longer, but then I realized I had some stuff in here from the next day....

It was around 8 AM the next morning when I saw Judy again. I was well rested, and now it was her looking terrible.

“Carrots, what the-?”

“My head is killing me. I took some aspirin and drank way too much water, but that didn’t help. “

Oh, crap. The heat. That’s today? Oh, yeah, it’s today. Also, today is the day I meet Rocco Larrs. Yesterday, Judy and I had decided to let him implicate himself in the golden carrot scheme so we could turn him in to the local cops. We still had not discussed exactly what sort of pretend falling out Judy and I would have, or if we would have one. 

“Jenny came by earlier and said she would be spending the morning at Rocco’s place. Sleeping, apparently. I texted Jeanette to see if she wanted to wander around downtown so we could meet Rocco and do the thing we discussed.” I wanted to keep as close to the dream events as possible so I would know what to do, but Judy wasn't supposed to be like this! I experienced a brief moment of panic. Had I made her sick somehow? If so, what could I do about it? 

She must have noticed my concern. “Nick, I’m not feeling well, but I’m not an invalid. I’ll be fine,” she said as I tried to remember what I had told her and how much she believed about today. Everything else had happened almost EXACTLY the way of my dream, so I had expected this would be the same….

Jeanette arrived and Judy offered to drive us into town, but the vixen did that instead. I sat in back holding Judy’s hand as her headache got worse and she started showing various classic signs of a migraine headache including sensitivity to light and sound. We turned around and headed back to drop Judy off with orders to take a nap. She nodded, and I helped her to her room. We got there and she more or less shut the door in my face. Right. It’s not a migraine, even if it does look and probably feel like one. 

Jeanette and I went back into town, and I noticed 'bunnies only' signs on some of the businesses, and then spotted Rocco Larrs. I looked at Jeanette and wondered how much to tell her about my plans? Well, honesty and candidness had helped me before…

“Jeanette, I was going to do this with Judy this morning, but she’s out of it. You know Judy and I are both cops, right?”

She nodded, so I continued, “OK. That’s Rocco Larrs. He doesn’t know I’m a cop, and I’d like to keep it that way. We think he plans to steal the golden carrot tomorrow and we’d like to find out how exactly he’s going to do it. I’d like you to come with me as we ‘accidently’ run into him and then I make friends with him. I’d like to get him into a diner so I can get him talking. “

“How can I help?”

“Well, just kind of, you know, go along with whatever I say. Some of it is going to sound crazy and I may say some unflattering things about Judy, but I don’t mean them. Act naïve and possibly in love with me or whatever. I don’t know. At some point, I’ll basically tell you to get lost, and then Rocco and I will hash out a deal to steal the carrot. Right?” 

“Sounds… complicated. Kinda exciting, I guess?” She replied, sounding unsure.

“Just follow my lead,” I said. "You'll be fine."

It went OK. We met him at his portable fruit stand and I pretended to be frustrated with Judy; Rocco really loved me complaining about her. I didn’t say anything about being a cop, and Jeanette kind of hung on me like she really was in love with me. 

We went to the diner and sat down. Rocco spent some time leering at Jeanette, I bragged about having her ‘under my thrall,’ and she giggled. I ALMOST lost it at that point, but was saved by her cell going off. 

“Why don’t you go somewhere and answer that babe? It’s time for the men folk to talk about important things anyway.”

She left and I started in on Rocco. “So I hear you have big plans. Engaged to Jenny Hopps? I’m working on something similar with Judy, but she thinks I have the hots for the fox you just saw and won’t give me the time of day…”

After an hour or two, I had Rocco convinced I was just a small time con-mammal with no clue how much better he was at hustling than me. I didn’t try to close the deal right then because I remembered I would have to do it later in the day. Right now, I was thinking about Judy and the laundry room.

Rocco and I parted ways, I met back up with Jeanette, and she told me that Judy had texted her to check on things. Jeanette had given Judy a more or less concise report on Operation: Rocco Larrs. 

“And I was careful to let her know that you didn’t mean any of those things you said,” she assured me. 

Argh. “You know, she wasn’t here, so she didn’t actually hear any of them, so you didn’t have to tell her I said mean things.” 

“Yeah, but what if she finds out later?”

Jeanette dropped me back off at the house, and I debated what to do until just before the time I knew Jenny, and then Judy, would be doing laundry. I was careful to bring something to wash as an excuse and to arrive early enough to be there before Judy arrived. 

Dealing with Jenny might be tricky now that I was trying to hustle her boyfriend, but I figured I could do it. I had had plenty of sleep, I wasn't trying to talk her into anything, and there were no pressing issues on my mind. Well, two pressing issues now, but I hoped to get progress on one of them sooner and the other later. 

I started to have second thoughts right before Judy came in. Wait a minute. Is this what I really want? She’s going to be in her right mind, but REALLY horny and here I am waiting for her. But her headaches might be eased and that was part of reason everything went badly before, so I should do this. But that's too selfish and not a very good long term goal, but-. I was still trying to decide why I was actually doing this when she showed up, saw me, and tried to hide behind her linens. Then she realized why the bed sheets were dirty, remembered that foxes have keen noses, and tried to casually cram the sheets into the nearest machine, which turned out to be a drier. 

Jenny watched and tried not to laugh. “Who’s the lucky buck?”

“It was… not a buck. No,” and then Judy looked rather pointedly at me. For her part, Jenny was no longer laughing and she was focusing more and more on her sister. 

“I’ll just go back to my room and give you girls some privacy for whatever this is….” And I left. 

I waited back in my room. And waited. I was reminded, first, that she tells me she loves me on the bridge tomorrow after seeing me dating Jeanette, and then, second, of the phone call and I wondered if Judy would find me asleep again? The bridge talk probably won't happen now because I'm not dating that vixen and Rocco probably won't wreck the faire. Maybe I could-

I heard a knock on my door and rushed to open it. Relief flooded me as I saw Judy standing there in the same jeans and t-shirt she wore in the laundry room, but now she was looking uncertain rather than embarrassed. I was pretty sure I knew what this meant. If Judy didn’t want to get the kind of relief I had in mind, I think she would have avoided me, and not come to my room. Certainly she would not come in! But I still wanted some sort of signal from her to indicate that she realized all this and I wanted to make sure she didn't have some other reason for being here. 

“May I come in?” Judy asked after I didn't invite her immediately. If she noticed how distracted I was, she didn't mention it. 

“Sure,” I said, getting out the way. She brushed against me briefly, and I fought down my own arousal. Think about something else! Tax evasion!

She sat on the bed and then I sat on the floor across from her on my sleeping mat, not touching her. I didn’t want to pressure her or look like I was either. Besides, she’s smaller than me, so our eyes were more level this way. 

“Nick, you told me that I was going to go into heat?”

“That’s right. Today. This afternoon. Not long ago.”

“So, you knew I would be in the laundry room?”

“Yeah. I was there because I knew. I wanted….. Well, I guess I was being selfish. I wanted to remind you I was here just in case you wanted to," but now I hesitated. What if she gets angry and tells me to mind my own business? "That is, if you wanted to come and see me. For whatever reason.” I didn’t even bother to try and tell her I had had clothes to wash. That was threadbare excuse and not able to hold up to serious scrutiny, so I ignored it now. 

“Nick, this isn't love. You know that, right? What I’m feeling now is lust.”

“I know that.” God of Foxes, I knew that, but I was having a harder and harder time NOT trying to kiss her or at least touch her at this point. I haven’t felt like this since I was a teenager. I did and did not want to look at her. I wanted to scream, or possibly rip off my clothes and hers. But. She’s my friend. She’s my friend. Don’t spoil it. 

“You’ve been sleeping on the floor?”

“Yeah,” I said, relieved to be talking about something, anything, else. “One of the reasons I was such as jerk in my dream was lack of sleep. You actually had to force me to take a cold shower this morning just to get me moving! In that scenario, tomorrow I’m going to ALMOST allow a known criminal to conduct a felony theft and then escape. I say almost because I changed my mind at literally the last minute and arrested him instead. 

“So, I brought this along to remedy the sleep problem. These bunny beds are just too small,” I said, gesturing to my bedroll and breaking eye contact. Then I surprised myself by laying down on my mat, and turning to her, “See?”

She looked at me and said three words. “Nick? Shut up,” and then she joined me on the bedroll.

Did she rock my world? Yes, yes she did. 

After, I showered and then she did, as well. I checked on my laundry and found it to be dry after Jenny, or possibly Judy, put it in the drier. I collected it and then came back to my room and was glad to see Judy was there, toweling herself. I sat on the bed as she got dressed, and then she sat down on my right side. Together, we put our backs up against the wall and talked. I smiled, remembering not only the fun we just had, but the way we had spent the time in the dream. This was about the time we would have been glaring at each other across a mud hole.

“How do you want to proceed with Rocco?” She asked. 

“Well, I need to find him at his truck this afternoon and ‘seal the deal’ by talking about the nuts and bolts of the plan. I’m going to demand 10% of the take. The main problem is that I’m ‘off the map’ at the moment and I don’t really know what’s going to happen because it was supposed to be the three of us this morning, but it was just Jeanette and I. Rocco knows you’re a cop, but doesn’t know I am. I’m telling you now and I’ll tell the local sheriff later to cover my tail just in case something goes wrong. Best case would be the local guys catching Rocco with the carrot in his truck and I never have to go near that bastard again.”

“Want me to call Bogo?” Judy asked. 

“I’m not sure…. We have time, so yes, I think it’s a good idea.” 

She called and then we talked to Chief Bogo. He told us to work with the local sheriff, and I found myself more relieved than expected when I heard this. I suppose I would like a rematch. 

We got a ride into town and then I went and found Rocco. The raccoon and I talked about the heist and I told him I expected to be well compensated because I figured he’d expect that. I tried to record the conversation with my cell phone in my pocket, but it really only caught my side of the conversation and I couldn’t exactly say the kind of things that would be useful in a court because I couldn't be sure Rocco would fall for that. 

Rocco and I parted ways, and then I went to meet Judy at the Bunnyburrow sheriff's station to let them know about the situation. They weren’t very concerned about it and didn’t take us very seriously. Eventually, they told us to handle it ourselves if we were such super cops that we were working on crimes on our vacation. So, that’s what we decided to do.


	6. Fourth Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick goes to the faire with two women, and then Rocco makes his play

The next day, which was the last day of the faire, Judy, Jeanette, and I wandered around the faire just like normal mammals. In the dream, it was anything but normal, but this time it was actually fun. Jeanette and Judy had a kind of friendly competition thing going that started when Judy won the first game and asked for the stuffed fox toy as her prize. Then she gave it to me and did a kind of victory dance when I took it. 

“In yo’ face, vixen!” she said. 

Jeanette rolled her eyes, and said, “but Judy, you’re not even under his thrall!” At which point they started comparing notes from yesterday and loudly argued about who was under who’s thrall precisely and I tried to stay out of it. That became much more difficult when Judy asked Jeanette about various fox sexual cues and they stared giggling and whispering. I finally broke them up by suggesting we paint some pumpkins.

Jeanette won that one. “In yo’ face, doe!” she cried. Judy pouted very briefly and then we went on to the next game and then the next. I wondered how far they would take this thing until we got to the dating wagon. At this point, I expected to have to tell them who had won and then ride with her. That would be Judy, of course, but the women surprised me. 

“I think you won, Judy, fair and square. Take your prize,” Jeanette said, gesturing to the dating wagon.

“No, no, I think you won on points. That pumpkin drawing was very good, and the first one wasn’t fair to you because the water pump handles were way too small for foxes. It’s obvious because Nick didn’t do very well either."

“Hmmm. Normally, I would just say to let Nick decide, but he’s a male and perhaps not the brightest, so how about you and I take the ride and leave him here? We can use the time to talk more about your experience with him yesterday,” Jeanette suggested. 

I saw Judy’s eyes light up and realized I had better put stop to THIS as fast as I could. “Ladies, it’s time for that Rocco thing I told you both about earlier?”

“Oh, right, right… Do you really need my help?” Judy asked, and I ground my teeth. She heard this and winked at Jeanette. “I have to help him out. It’s a cop thing, you know?”

“Yeah, keep in touch, OK?” Jeanette hugged Judy, waved to me, and walked back into the crowd toward her brother’s pie stand. 

“Alright, now that comedy hour is over…” I said.

“Ah, hush. There’s the truck. Where do you want me?”

A few minute later, I walked over to Rocco as he was loading the box with the carrot into the back of his truck. As expected, he saw me, but not Judy. “What the heck are you doing here Wilde? We should NOT be seen together.”

“I’m a cop, Rocco.”

“You’re not a-“ he began. 

“Rocco Lars, you’re under arrest for felony theft. Now, are you going to come quietly or –“ and then he threw his cigarette in my face and kicked me. Again. And left me on the ground cursing my bad luck. Again. But this time, when he jumped in the cab of his truck, he just barely had time to realize he wasn’t alone when he heard a voice, followed by unconsciousness. 

“You dumb skunk wannabe!” Judy shouted, and kicked him through the still open door. I got to him first and put the cuffs on him.


	7. Later, in Zootopia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And we come full circle

“OFFICER HOPPS! OFFICER WILDE! MY OFFICE, NOW!” Chief Bogo shouted. Listeners might have detected a faint sense of anticipation in the shout this time. It was hard to tell, even though everyone in the building had heard plenty of shouts for comparison. 

Officers Wilde and Hopps entered the chief’s office and shut the door. As usual, the office was arranged for large mammals like the chief, and there were few amenities for small mammals like rabbits and foxes. It may be that the chief had done this on purpose because he had so few smaller mammals working for him, but if so, he would probably be making changes. 

“Take your seats,” the big buffalo said. He looked angry, but then, he always looked angry.

They got up in the seats in the usual fashion, facing the cape buffalo across the desk. Wilde looked amused as usual, and Hopps looked determined, also as usual. Their eyes met their chief’s eyes calmly, with no sense of fear or uncertainty. 

'I have high hopes for that partnership', Bogo thought. 

“So. I have your reports. Anything you’d like to add?” Wilde and Hopps shook their heads. Wilde had looked at Hopps first, Bogo noted. “OK. I have some questions for the two of you and then I’d like to talk to you individually.”

“Are we in trouble, sir? Do I need my police mammal’s rep?” Wilde asked, smirking. 

“Sure, why not?” The chief then hit his intercom, “Clawhauser. Get the DA on the line. Wilde wants to talk to his police mammal’s representative.”

“His police mammal what?” came the reply from Clawhauser almost instantly. He sounded genuinely confused, as if he truly had no idea what a police mammal rep was. 

“Never mind,” Bogo added, and cut the connection by taking his figure off the button. 

Nick continued to smirk and Judy tried not to laugh. 

“So, we have you to thank for another case cracked and another criminal put away. This one while the two of you were on vacation, no less. What am I supposed to make of that?”

“Maybe you could give us more vacation time?” Judy asked, but she wasn’t really serious. 

“Beat me by half a second,” Nick muttered. 

“Anyway, I have a letter of thanks from the Bunnyborrow sheriff that will go into your records. Also, there will be an awards ceremony tomorrow for the both of you. Now. Officer Hopps, please excuse us while I talk to your partner. When I’m done, he’ll come out and you’ll come in.”

Judy left and then it was just Officer Wilde and Chief Bogo. 

"Sir, before you say anything, I'd just like to tell you that I'm aware of my unimpressive work history, and I'll be doing everything I can to remedy that in future. If you like, I can get started immediately on my parking ticket quota," the fox stated, staring at a point somewhere over the buffalo's left shoulder.

In reply, the buffalo just stared. Of all the comments he expected, this was not one. He shuffled some papers on his desk while he thought.

Then he said, "I plan to promote Hopps, and I had been considering breaking you two up. In light of recent events, and what you just said,” the chief added, looking uncertain, "I'll have to rethink that."

“You have something else on your mind, Wilde?”

“Sir, Judy fully deserves advanced rank, but I'd like to remain her partner.”

The chief sighed and waved a massive arm in the general direction of the door. "OK, fine. Go get her and then wait outside.”

Nick climbed off the chair, opened the door, walked out, and then closed the door part way. He remembered the way that meeting had ended in the dream, and now he smiled when he saw Judy.

“Your turn,” he said, pointing behind him. 

“What’s he want?” 

“You’ll see, sarge.” 

She stopped, uncertain, but the door was already part way open, so Nick pushed her through it and then closed the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think? Too cheesy?


	8. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some have asked what happens next? This is what I was thinking...

Time went by, and Judy and I went back to a kind of pre-Bunnyborrow normal. ZPD still had very strict rules about public displays of affection while in uniform, but now the rules were more of a problem for me because of how I knew I felt, but they didn’t appear to be as much of a problem for her because she didn’t seem to be interested in a romantic relationship anyway.

I don’t mean to say I liked the old normal, but it was familiar and I used to be able to do it in my sleep while she covered for me. I've been doing better since we got back and Judy hasn't had to cover for me. Or not as much, anyway.

Judy and I went back to our old routine getting to and from work. She’d pick me up, we’d go to work, pretty much do everything together, and then she’d usually drop me off and go home after work. She didn’t mention the four letter “l” word and I didn’t either. I found myself sufficiently satisfied with this until one of the days when Judy asked about eating at my place for dinner. 

“Tonight? Come on, Carrots, it’s two for one carrot vodkas at the Watering Hole!” I argued. 

“Humor me, OK? I don’t want alcohol tonight anyway, and that band they have is frankly horrible.”

“That’s what the drinks are for,” I reminded her, but she just stared at me until I gave up. It was trick she had picked up recently. 

“I’ll drop you off, get changed, and then come back to your place around 6 PM?” she said. 

“Fine. Want me to cook or order in like last time?”

“Can you cook? I’ve never actually seen you try, so it’s probably best to order in.”

I had a half carrot pizza on the table when she knocked on my door, promptly at six o’clock. “It’s open!” I said from the kitchen, again wondering why I bothered to shout. It’s just a habit, I guess. 

She was standing near the dinner table looking at the food when I came out of the kitchen with our drinks. Blueberry soda for me and, what else, carrot juice for her. I noticed that she was wearing the same clothes I had seen when she visited me under the bridge that time. I hoped that wasn’t a bad omen.

“Dig in,” I said, but Judy didn’t make an immediate grab for the slice she wanted like last time. She was definitely more thoughtful than usual this evening as we sat at the table and talked about nothing and everything.

I didn’t want our evening to end, but it always does. “So, want me to walk you to your car, or can you find your own way?” I said, to get the ball rolling. Her leaving was awkward the last time she had dinner at my place, so I was trying to make it easier this time. 

“Nick, what if I asked to stay?” She was looking directly at me now; her lavender eyes were wide open, and her ears were up. She leaned forward slightly, waiting for my answer. 

"I would say yes, of course," I replied, thinking she wasn't serious.

I tried to laugh as she got up and walked toward my couch in the den, and then turned left toward my door. I could not laugh, of course, because watching her leave isn't very funny. Then she came back with a backpack and any thought of humor fled.

“I brought my uniform and everything I'll need for tomorrow. I left this by the door when I came in," she said, tilting her head in that cute way she has. "Unless you’d rather I go?” 

“Please don’t ever go,” I replied, somewhat stupidly. “I mean, that is, please stay.”

She offered her paw to me as she looked directly into my eyes again. “Please don't read too much into this. I still haven't decided how I feel about us, but I know that I don't want to just be friends." 

I was frozen in place, so she asked, "Are you just going to just stand there with your mouth open, or are you going to show me your bedroom?”

I took her paw and lead the way, and then I sat on the bed, still holding her paw as she put her pack down. I looked into her eyes and waited. She stood there a moment, uncertain. Then she sighed, let go of my paw, put one of her paws on my chest, pushed me down, laid down beside me, and put her head on my chest. "I know I want to wake up with you," she said.

I woke up just before the alarm went off the next morning, and confirmed I had not been dreaming this time. Judy was still here, asleep, but now wearing her night clothes. She looked like a perfect angel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been making some changes.... And may make more later. I don't really feel like anything I do is ever finished, really.


End file.
